A senior Taipei police official yesterday vowed to uphold the law when policing pro-independence rallies on Saturday and Sunday, which are set to coincide with President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) inauguration for a second term.
Speaking at a press conference held by the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) legislative caucus, Taipei City Police Department Deputy Commissioner Wei Ti-kun (衛悌琨) said that police would follow the principles of “protecting those who follow the law, cracking down on irregularities and arresting those who resort to violence.”
TSU caucus whip Lin Shih-chia (林世嘉) said she hoped that police would not deploy razor-wire barricades or alternative service draftees around the planned rallies.
Photo: CNA
She also said the police should not use pepper spray to drive protesters away.
Wei said security force deployment programs had been arranged for the inauguration ceremony on Sunday. Traffic controls would be imposed depending on the security requirements for the officials and foreign guests invited to attend the event, he added.
No razor-wire barricades would be deployed, Wei said, adding that in line with the rules governing police affairs, alternative service draftees cannot be deployed on the front line of police activities.
Police are not equipped with pepper spray, he added.
People planning to attend the rallies should do so in a peaceful and rational manner, while those who do not plan to take part should avoid the restricted zones around the Presidential Office, where the inauguration ceremony will be held, the police official said.
The TSU is among several pro-independence organizations that are expected to jointly stage a series of protest rallies and parades around the country this weekend.
Calling on the public to stand up and voice their discontent with Ma, TSU Chairman Huang Kun-huei (黃昆輝) accused the president of surrendering Taiwanese sovereignty to Beijing with what he said was Ma’s pro-China policy.
Ma “will become a joke if he dares curry favor with China in his inaugural speech,” he said.
Aside from the TSU, other organizers of the protest activities include the Democratic Progressive Party, the Taiwan Nation Alliance and the Taiwan Association of University Professors.
FAST TRACK? Chinese spouses must renounce their Chinese citizenship and pledge allegiance to Taiwan to gain citizenship, some demonstrators said Opponents and supporters of a bill that would allow Chinese spouses to obtain Taiwanese citizenship in four years instead of six staged protests near the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday morning. Those who oppose the bill proposed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) demanded that Chinese spouses be granted citizenship only after renouncing their Chinese citizenship, passing a citizenship test and pledging allegiance to Taiwan. The demonstrators, who were protesting at a side entrance to the Legislative Yuan on Jinan Road, were mostly members of the Taiwan Association of University Professors and other organizations advocating Taiwanese independence. Supporters of the bill, led
SILENT MAJORITY: Only 1 percent of Chinese rejected all options but war to annex Taiwan, while one-third viewed war as unacceptable, a university study showed Many Chinese are more concerned with developments inside their country than with seeking unification with Taiwan, al-Jazeera reported on Friday. Although China claims Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to annex it, by force if necessary, 23-year-old Chinese Shao Hongtian was quoted by al-Jazeera as saying that “hostilities are not the way to bring China and Taiwan together.” “I want unification to happen peacefully,” Shao said. Al-Jazeera said it changed Shao’s name to respect his wish for anonymity. If peaceful unification is not possible, Shao said he would prefer “things to remain as they are,” adding that many of his friends feel
Taiwan has “absolute air superiority” over China in its own airspace, Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee on Monday, amid concern over whether Taipei could defend itself against a military incursion by Beijing. Po made the remarks in response to a question from Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉) on whether Taiwan would have partial or complete air superiority if Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) warplanes were to enter Taiwan’s airspace. Po, a retired pilot, said that the Taiwanese military has “absolute air superiority” over PLA
A shipment of basil pesto imported by Costco Wholesale Taiwan from the US in the middle of last month was intercepted at the border after testing positive for excessive pesticide residue, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. Samples taken from a shipment of the Kirkland Signature brand of basil pesto imported by Costco contained 0.1 milligrams per kilogram of ethylene oxide, exceeding the non-detectable limit. Ethylene oxide is a carcinogenic substance that can be used as a pesticide. The 674kg shipment of basil pesto would either be destroyed or returned to its country of origin, as is the procedure for all